11:13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Seeing that I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry,
15:17 So I boast 31 in Christ Jesus about the things that pertain to God. 15:18 For I will not dare to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in order to bring about the obedience 32 of the Gentiles, by word and deed, 15:19 in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Spirit of God. So from Jerusalem even as far as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.
3:1 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus 33 for the sake of you Gentiles –
1:1 From Paul, 39 an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
2:16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you with respect to food or drink, or in the matter of a feast, new moon, or Sabbath days –
2:1 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you, 40 and for those in Laodicea, and for those who have not met me face to face. 41
1 tn The participle ἰδόντες (idontes) has been taken temporally to retain the structure of the passage. Many modern translations, because of the length of the sentence here, translate this participle as a finite verb and break the Greek sentences into several English sentences (NIV, for example, begins new sentences at the beginning of both vv. 8 and 9).
2 tn Grk “to the uncircumcision,” that is, to the Gentiles.
3 tn Grk “to the circumcision,” a collective reference to the Jewish people.
4 tn Or “worked through”; the same word is also used in relation to Paul later in this verse.
5 tn Or “his ministry as an apostle.”
6 tn Grk “to the circumcision,” i.e., the Jewish people.
7 tn Grk “also empowered me to the Gentiles.”
8 sn Cephas. This individual is generally identified with the Apostle Peter (L&N 93.211).
9 tn Or “who were influential as,” or “who were reputed to be.” See also the note on the word “influential” in 2:6.
10 sn Pillars is figurative here for those like James, Peter, and John who were leaders in the Jerusalem church.
11 tn The participle γνόντες (gnontes) has been taken temporally. It is structurally parallel to the participle translated “when they saw” in v. 7.
12 tn Grk “me and Barnabas.”
13 tn Grk “so,” with the ἵνα (Jina) indicating the result of the “pillars” extending the “right hand of fellowship,” but the translation “they gave…the right hand of fellowship so that we would go” could be misunderstood as purpose here. The implication of the scene is that an agreement, outlined at the end of v. 10, was reached between Paul and Barnabas on the one hand and the “pillars” of the Jerusalem church on the other.
14 tn Grk “to the circumcision,” a collective reference to the Jewish people.
15 tn Or “tool.”
16 tn Grk “the sons of Israel.” In Acts, Paul is a minister to all nations, including Israel (Rom 1:16-17).
17 tn Grk “And.” Since this represents a response to Paul’s reply in v. 19, καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the logical sequence.
18 tn Grk “rescuing.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the participle ἐξαιρούμενος (exairoumeno") has been translated as a finite verb and a new sentence started in the translation at the beginning of v. 17.
19 tn That is, from the Jewish people. Grk “the people”; the words “your own” have been supplied to clarify the meaning.
20 tn The antecedent of the relative pronoun is probably both the Jews (“your own people”) and the Gentiles, indicating the comprehensive commission Paul received.
21 sn To open their eyes so that they turn… Here is Luke’s most comprehensive report of Paul’s divine calling. His role was to call humanity to change their position before God and experience God’s forgiveness as a part of God’s family. The image of turning is a key one in the NT: Luke 1:79; Rom 2:19; 13:12; 2 Cor 4:6; 6:14; Eph 5:8; Col 1:12; 1 Thess 5:5. See also Luke 1:77-79; 3:3; 24:47.
22 tn BDAG 352-53 s.v. ἐξουσία 2 states, “Also of Satan’s power Ac 26:18.” It is also possible to translate this “the domain of Satan” (cf. BDAG 353 s.v. 6)
23 tn Or “and an inheritance.”
24 sn The expression “I do not want you to be unaware [Grk ignorant]” also occurs in 1 Cor 10:1; 12:1; 1 Thess 4:13. Paul uses the phrase to signal that he is about to say something very important.
25 tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited).
26 tn Grk “in order that I might have some fruit also among you just as also among the rest of the Gentiles.”
27 tn Or “obligated.”
28 tn Grk “serving.” This is a continuation of the previous sentence in the Greek text, but in keeping with contemporary English style, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
29 tn The genitive in the phrase τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τοῦ θεοῦ (to euangelion tou qeou, “the gospel of God”) could be translated as either a subjective genitive (“the gospel which God brings”) or an objective genitive (“the gospel about God”). Either is grammatically possible. This is possibly an instance of a plenary genitive (see ExSyn 119-21; M. Zerwick, Biblical Greek, §§36-39). If so, an interplay between the two concepts is intended: The gospel which God brings is in fact the gospel about himself.
30 tn Grk “so that the offering of the Gentiles may become acceptable.” This could be understood to refer to an offering belonging to the Gentiles (a possessive genitive) or made by the Gentiles (subjective genitive), but more likely the phrase should be understood as an appositive genitive, with the Gentiles themselves consisting of the offering (so J. D. G. Dunn, Romans [WBC 38], 2:860). The latter view is reflected in the translation “so that the Gentiles may become an acceptable offering.”
31 tc ‡ After οὖν (oun), several important Alexandrian and Western
32 tn Grk “unto obedience.”
33 tc Several early and important witnesses, chiefly of the Western text (א* D* F G [365]), lack ᾿Ιησοῦ (Ihsou, “Jesus”) here, while most Alexandrian and Byzantine
34 sn In Pauline writings saints means any true believer. Thus for Paul to view himself as less than the least of all the saints is to view himself as the most unworthy object of Christ’s redemption.
35 sn The parallel phrases to proclaim and to enlighten which follow indicate why God’s grace was manifested to Paul. Grace was not something just to be received, but to be shared with others (cf. Acts 13:47).
36 tn BDAG 697 s.v. οἰκονομία 1.b renders the term here as “divine office.”
37 tn See BDAG 828 s.v. πληρόω 3. The idea here seems to be that the apostle wants to “complete the word of God” in that he wants to preach it to every person in the known world (cf. Rom 15:19). See P. T. O’Brien, Colossians, Philemon (WBC), 82.
38 tn The genitive noun τῆς δόξης (ths doxhs) is an attributive genitive and has therefore been translated as “glorious riches.”
39 tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.
40 tn Or “I want you to know how hard I am working for you…”
41 tn Grk “as many as have not seen my face in the flesh.”
42 tn Or “having been rooted.”
43 sn The three participles rooted, built up, and firm belong together and reflect three different metaphors. The first participle “rooted” (perfect tense) indicates a settled condition on the part of the Colossian believers and refers to horticulture. The second participle “built up” (present passive) comes from the world of architecture. The third participle “firm [established]” (present passive) comes from the law courts. With these three metaphors (as well as the following comment on thankfulness) Paul explains what he means when he commands them to continue to live their lives in Christ. The use of the passive probably reflects God’s activity among them. It was he who had rooted them, had been building them up, and had established them in the faith (cf. 1 Cor 3:5-15 for the use of mixed metaphors).
44 tn The Greek text has the article τῇ (th), not the possessive pronoun ὑμῶν (Jumwn), but the article often functions as a possessive pronoun and was translated as such here (ExSyn 215).
45 tn Verse two begins a subordinate ἵνα (Jina) clause which was divided up into two sentences for the sake of clarity in English. Thus the phrase “My goal is that” is an attempt to reflect in the translation the purpose expressed through the ἵνα clauses.
46 tn BDAG 956 s.v. συμβιβάζω 1.b reads “unite, knit together.” Some commentators take the verb as a reference to instruction, “instructed in love.” See P. T. O’Brien, Colossians, Philemon (WBC), 93.
47 tn The phrase “and that” translates the first εἰς (eis) clause of v. 2 and reflects the second goal of Paul’s striving and struggle for the Colossians – the first is “encouragement” and the second is “full assurance.”
48 tc There are at least a dozen variants here, almost surely generated by the unusual wording τοῦ θεοῦ, Χριστοῦ (tou qeou, Cristou, “of God, Christ”; so Ì46 B Hil). Scribes would be prone to conform this to more common Pauline expressions such as “of God, who is in Christ” (33), “of God, the Father of Christ” (א* A C 048vid 1175 bo), and “of the God and Father of Christ” (א2 Ψ 075 0278 365 1505 pc). Even though the external support for the wording τοῦ θεοῦ, Χριστοῦ is hardly overwhelming, it clearly best explains the rise of the other readings and should thus be regarded as authentic.
49 tn The expression “for the display of” is an attempt to convey in English the force of the Greek preposition εἰς (eis) in this context.